A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers

June 4, 2022

A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers

On the moon called Panga, long ago robots put down their tools and walked out of their factories. They wandered off into the wilderness, never to be seen again. Centuries later, they are a legend to tell children.  After being a tea monk for years, traveling from town to town to perform tea ceremonies, Sibling Dex is tired of their normal routine and decides to go off grid into the wilderness. To their surprise, they encounter a robot named Mosscap (who is a wild-built robot, constructed from the parts of earlier generations of robots). Mosscap has been sent by its people to find out what people need. This raises the question for both Mosscap and Sibling Dex that if people have everything they want, do they need more?

This is an homage to taking comfort in another's presence, that it's okay to want to not feel alone. I love Becky Chambers' writing. I loved her Wanderers series and was sorry to see it end. This is the first book in what I hope will be a new series. Mosscap and Sibing Dex are great characters, like all of the characters in Chambers' books. The story is comforting like a cup of tea at the end of a cold or troubling day. Love the cover picture of Dex sitting on his wagon with a steaming cup of tea and Mosscap coming down the road.

Ruins like the ones that Dex and Mosscap find at the wilderness monastery

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers

October 18, 2022

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers

After exploring the unpopulated areas of their moon, Sibling Dex (a well-known tea monk) and his new companion Mosscap (a wild-built robot, made up from parts of robot generations that came before it) head for more populated regions. As they begin to visit small communities, reaction to Mosscap is varied. Most places are excited to meet a robot, but not all of them. As they draw closer to the City, Mosscap continues its quest for its people: what do humans need? If they have everything they want, do they need anything at all? And more importantly, what do Sibling Dex and Mosscap need?

Becky Chambers writes some of the most creative sci fi out there. She goes places other sci fi authors don't even know exist. I love her descriptions of a world that has come back to life after humans did their best to kill it. Crown-shy is Mosscap's term for the way that trees instinctively know how close to grow together, to give each other space to live and grow.

I love Sibling Dex and Mosscap, and I hope there will be more Monk and Robot books.

A post-apocalyptic town like the ones Dex and Mosscap visit

To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers

January 15, 2022

To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers

A group of space explorers on a long-range project sleep between stops at the worlds on their itinerary, sometimes for a decade or longer. Each time they wake up with different features, having transformed themselves in sleep. At the same time, things are constantly changing back on Earth - sometimes the astronauts wake to find that their home countries no longer exist, or that support for space exploration has morphed into a type of cult - only to find that things have changed again the next time they wake. Their goal is to study, explore, and send their findings back to Earth.

This is a stand-alone novella outside of Chambers' Wayfarers series (which I love). While I didn't love it as much as the books in the series, as always, there is great world-building, diverse characters, and wonderful writing. There are no battles or wars, no nefarious plots, not much of a plot at all, just great characters going about their day to day tasks.

A galaxy far, far away

The Galaxy and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers

May 11, 2021

The Galaxy and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers

The planet Gora is totally unremarkable. It has no air, no water, no plants or wildlife. But its location at the crossroads of several galactic wormholes that connect the galaxy have made Gora the equivalent of a galactic truck stop. It's a place to refuel, pick up some snacks and supplies, get a transit permit, and stretch your legs (if you have legs).

Several vessels are docked at the Five Hop One Stop when a technology glitch forces three travelers from different species to remain on the planet for longer than they had planned. During their wait for the malfunction to be corrected, they are forced to confront questions about who they are, where have they been, and where are they going, as well as their feelings about alien species.

This is the fourth and final book in the Wayfarers series, and I'm really sorry to see it end. The first and fourth books are the best in the series. I look forward to reading the new series that Becky Chambers has planned.

Per Becky Chambers, a galactic wormhole is a shortcut from one part of the galaxy to another

Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers

March 16, 2021

Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers

Centuries after the last humans left Earth, the Exodus Fleet carries the remnants of Earth society. Humans have finally been accepted into the galactic community, and many have left the Fleet. The remaining Exodans live in hexagons aboard the connected ships.

Tessa and her family remained aboard the ship, while her brother Ashby took off for the stars (he is the ship captain in The Long Way to Small Angry Planet). But when their way of life is challenged, they begin to question: if a ship/fleet reaches its final destination, what is the purpose for its continued existence? Tessa must decide whether to remain on the ship or to settle on one of the nearby planets.

This is the third book in the Wayfarer series, and while nothing compares with the first book, this is a very solid entry. Highly recommended.

Hexagonal Exodan ship

A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers

November 22, 2019

A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers

The second book in the Wayfarer trilogy begins 28 minutes after the first book (The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet) ended.  Lovelace, the original AI from the Wayfarer, is in a new body, which she refers to as a kit, traveling in the company of Pepper, Jenks' friend, to her home on the moon of Coriol.  It's a hard adjustment, going from a virtual existence to the limitations of a physical being.

Overall, this is a great follow up to the first book.  My only disappointment is that, while the story features some of the characters from the first book, we don't meet up again with the crew from the Wayfarer.  We do get Pepper’s backstory and how she ended up as a tech pro on Coriol, and Chambers does a great job of imagining what it would be like for Lovelace (now called Sidra) waking up in an alien body.  One of the things I didn’t like:  the predator animal on Pepper’s original planet is a gene-tweaked dog – I would have preferred some other animal, like a beaver/bear hybrid.  Looking forward to the third book, Record of a Spaceborn Few.

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

September 19, 2019

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

Rosemary Harper needs a fresh start, so she scams her way into a job as a clerk on a tunneling ship, the Wayfarer.  The crew turns out to be a collection of oddballs (the aliens are strange, but so are the humans) who depend on each other for – well, everything.  Rosemary learns that real family aren’t necessarily the people that you’re related to.

And one of the crewmembers appears to be in love with the ship’s AI, Lovey.

An absolutely great read!  Terrific world building, complete with an assortment of alien races, characters that you fall in love with and wish they were your friends, minute attention to detail that makes the story come alive.  Yes, there is a little inter-species sex but it’s tasteful and not graphic at all. You may cry a bit after the ship is attacked in Toremi territory (the small angry planet of the title).

Great fanart of the Wayfarer crew by SebasP

From the left:  Ohan, Ashby, Sissix, Rosemary, Dr. Chef, Kizzy, Jenks, Corbin

This is science fiction for people who don’t read or enjoy science fiction, not for the hardcore sci fi reader, and it's the first book in the Wayfarer trilogy.  I would put it in the same category as The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell; All Systems Red by Martha Wells; Ready Player One by Ernest Cline; The Martian by Andy Weir; and Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor.  I can't wait to read the next book.